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Okay, it isn't going to slow our ascent toward the debt ceiling for more than a nanosecond, but the government has found one growing revenue stream: bank fines. Last year lenders such as
UBS,
Wells FargoWFC -0.9895269680572526%Wells Fargo & Co.U.S.: NYSEUSD56.7231
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/Date(1481300815131-0600)/
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:
4328997
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13.945812807881774Market Cap
287727756224.032
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2.684563758389262% Rev. per Employee
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and Bank of New York Mellon kicked in a record $10.7 billion to pay for sins that ranged from manipulating interest rates to overcharging for mortgages to steering clients to Ponzi-scheme swindler Bernie Madoff, according to a CNN Money report.

All by themselves, the six largest banks have run up $40 billion in penalties with federal and state governments and agencies since 2008, says Independent Community Bankers Association's president Cam Fine, whose organization represents small banks and advocates the breakup of big banks.

Pay Up! Banks forked over a record amount in fines to the U.S. in 2012. This year is off to a fast start. Is the record in jeopardy?
William Waitzman for Barron's

The government could go after a lot more money, claim critics. "The numbers are minuscule in comparison to the profits these big organizations generate," says Fine. He adds: "To them, regulation has become nothing more than a cost-benefit analysis." And a large chunk of the fines go to make restitution to the harmed individuals or companies, rather than deficit reduction.

"Even the settlements are misleadingly large in a world where banks are too big to prosecute," says William Black, a law and economics professor at University of Missouri-Kansas City and longtime banking critic. "They're not large enough to cause the slightest risk of inconvenience to the bank."

Last Week: Review

Three Gains in a Row

The Dow Jones Industrials and the S&P 500 averages hit five-year highs on Friday's close, in the market's third straight week of gains. After a brisk start to earnings season, the Dow closed at 13,649.70, up about 1%. The S&P hit 1485.98.

Back to Work

Hillary Clinton resumed her duties as Secretary of State five days after her release from a hospital for treatment of a blood clot, officials said.

Dell Ponders Buyout

Now that the personal-computer boom appears doomed,
Dell
announced it is holding talks about going private for about $14 a share, with founder and Chief Operating Officer Michael Dell joined in the deal by buyout firm Silver Lake Partners. (For Barron's take on the deal, see "How to Give Dell's Shareholders a Fair Deal.")

Payday Postponed

Morgan Stanley introduced a new wrinkle by paying bonuses in the form of IOUs, perhaps in response to pressure from critics like Daniel Loeb, whose hedge-fund firm recently purchased a big stake in the investment bank.